Archive for March, 2009

Sounds like some bullshit, right? Wrong. The title of this post is the title of a rational and well-balanced article written for Time Magazine. The article considers the health effects, both positive and negative, of marijuana and manages to paint our good herb with a light mostly positive. It’s time for change. Remember, if you live in California then there is currently a bill in queue that would legalize and tax marijuana. Look down a few posts for more details.

——————————
“People are offering to sell us ‘hydro’ on the streets every week;” said L. Sparks, team leader of a special crimes task force in Johnson County. “We’ve probably seen a 50 percent increase in the last few years. They sell it as the good stuff.”
——————————

The article talks about the proliferation of high-end grow ops into nicer neighborhoods and the consequences arising from this.

Who likes to drive while high? Everyone who smokes pot and drives a car, that’s who. Recently, the California DMV has decided to the reasonable thing and make it policy for medicinal marijuana to be treated just like any other prescription drug when they consider whether or not to renew your license. Here’s the article.

(SALEM, Ore.) – Medical marijuana activists in Oregon are at the state capitol this week opposing SB 388 that would increase police scrutiny of sick people and create more obstacles for those who legally use cannabis for healthcare. Michael Bachara from The Hemp and Cannabis Foundation, says advocates are talking about the Human Services and Rural Health Policy. Bachara says it is a critical time to push for the rights of sick people who use medical marijuana. “We need to let our representatives know that we oppose this bill. It would allow law enforcement to inspect our gardens at any time and create even more hoops to jump through and more paperwork that would be a burden not only to the state but also to medical marijuana patients, caregivers and growers throughout the state,” said Anna Diaz of Oregon NORML (National Organization for Reform of Marijuana Laws).Full article.

——————————I introduced AB390 not only to address California’s growing economic crisis but, more importantly, to begin a rational public policy discussion about how best to regulate the state’s largest cash crop, estimated to be worth roughly $14 billion annually. Placing marijuana under the same regulatory system that now applies to alcohol represents the natural evolution of California’s laws and is in line with recent polls indicating strong support for decriminalizing marijuana.
——————————
Full article at the SF Gate. This piece was written by Tom Ammiano, the man who introduced bill AB390.